Judge rejects Boston bid to block Wynn Everett

Dec 07, 2015 Newsdesk Latest News, Top of the deck, World  

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A lawsuit seeking to block Wynn Resorts Ltd’s casino project in the city of Everett on the outskirts of Boston in the United States has been dismissed by a judge.

The City of Boston had claimed that the Massachusetts Gaming Commission had incorrectly applied the state’s Gaming Act when in September last year the body unanimously confirmed Wynn Resorts as the winner of a casino gaming licence for Greater Boston.

But a judge in the Superior Court – a statewide court of general jurisdiction – has ruled the commission did not violate either the Gaming Act or its regulations, reported local media outlets.

In early November last year, voters in Massachusetts rejected a ballot proposal to repeal a law enabling the establishment of up to three regional casino resorts.

Relations between Wynn Resorts and the mayor of Boston, Martin Walsh, have reportedly soured over the latter’s assertion that the new development would cause road traffic problems in Boston’s Charlestown district.

Wynn Resorts had offered Boston a one-time payment of US$6 million and US$2.6 million a year in the form of mitigation payments relating to the Wynn Everett project (pictured in a rendering), reported the Boston Globe newspaper on Thursday. But Mayor Walsh has rejected the offer, according to the local media reports.

The firm’s chairman Steve Wynn had told GGRAsia in an interview at Global Gaming Expo 2014 in Las Vegas that the US$1.7-billion Wynn Everett scheme would provide economic benefits for the entire Greater Boston area. He added the casino was well placed to draw in players from Asia, given its proximity to Boston, a major U.S. air hub and centre for university education and scientific research.

Wynn Resorts is also the parent of Wynn Macau Ltd, a developer of two casino resorts in Macau. The second, the US$4.1-billion Wynn Palace, is due to open on June 25.

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